tagged w/ Freedom
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The latest activism video from Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, hilariously depicts "TSA perverts" watching naked body scanner porn, stealing expensive electronics from the luggage of air travelers, digging for crotch gold during "enhanced pat downs" and turning into total psychopathic criminals.
See more activism videos by Mike Adams at:
www.NaturalNews.com/activismThe latest activism video from Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, hilariously depicts... more
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In 2010, 37 active Marines in the US Military committed suicide. Had Pvt. Lazzaric T. Caldwell been successful in his attempt, he would’ve been number 38.
Since discharged, Pvt. Caldwell has battled post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illnesses. In his latest battle, however, he’s fighting the Armed Forces.
Pvt. Lazzaric T. Caldwell was stationed in Okinawa, Japan when he attempted suicide in 2010. Caldwell has survived thankfully and is still around, but so are his troubles. He is taking the Marines to court after the US Military sentenced him to 180 days in jail for his attempted suicide.
Caldwell argues that the military should be trying to help servicemen who have been driven to suicide due to active duty, not punish them. Taking into account the US Armed Forces as a whole, Marine suicides are only but a fraction. In 2009, the figure of active-duty suicide extended to 309, and the number of attempts — more than 1,000 — exceeded the number of battlefield casualties that year.
Although the Military insists that they are trying to bring that number down, Caldwell says sending their own men and women to jail for their actions isn’t the right way to do it.
"I thought it was unfair and I thought it was just kind of morally wrong to punish somebody for something of that nature," Caldwell tells The Associated Press. "Seeing the kind of state I was in, there should have been a way of getting help instead of just a punishment.”
Navy Lt. Mike Hanzel is representing Caldwell as the discharged Marine attempts to fight that sentence and agrees that this is something that should be highlighted. As more servicemen attempt suicide, the Military should be digging for solutions, not dishing out sentences.
"I think it definitely touches important issues which are affecting all the branches of the armed forces right now," Hanzel adds to the AP via email.
"(I)f you succeed in committing suicide your service is treated honorably and your family receives full benefits," Hanzel says. "(I)f you are unsuccessful in a genuine suicide attempt, you can receive a federal conviction and get a bad-conduct discharge and jail time, which is what happened to Pvt Caldwell."
Caldwell was not sentenced for his suicide attempt, per se. Instead, rather, he was brought to military tribunal with the charge of "intentional self-injury without intent to avoid service.” The government says this charge is in place to maintain discipline within the armed forces.
Retired Army Judge Advocate Victor M. Hansen tells the AP that cases such as Caldwell rarely make it to court. "It happens but it doesn't happen a lot," he says.
Despite the government’s insistence that the rule is good for the armed forces, the Marine Corps experienced a record number of suicide attempts in 2011. In the last year, a total of 175 active servicemen attempting to take their lives.
http://rt.com/usa/news/suicide-attempt-caldwell-military-461/In 2010, 37 active Marines in the US Military committed suicide. Had Pvt. Lazzaric T.... more
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From 1979 onwards, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s stance against the Arts and freedom of expression, resulted in Iranian cinema gaining a reputation for visual asceticism and extreme economy of expression in its storytelling.From 1979 onwards, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s stance against the Arts and... more
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By Eric W. Dolan
Monday, January 30, 2012 17:08 EST
Former New Mexico governor and Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson called for the Patriot Act to be repealed Sunday night during a national American Civil Liberties Union conference.
The controversial counter-terrorism legislation was approved by Congress following the September 11 terrorist attacks.
“Ten years ago, we learned that the fastest way to pass a bad law is to call it the ‘Patriot Act’ and force Congress to vote on it in the immediate wake of a horrible attack on the United States,” Johnson said. “The irony is that there is really very little about the Patriot Act that is patriotic. Instead, it has turned out to be yet another tool the government is using to erode privacy, individual freedom and the Constitution itself.”
Civil liberties advocates have condemned the law because it allows authorities to conduct surveillance without identifying the person or location to be wiretapped, permits surveillance of non-U.S. persons who are not affiliated with a terrorist group, and allows law enforcement to gain access to “any tangible thing” during terrorism investigations.
“Benjamin Franklin had it right,” Johnson continued. “‘Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.’”
“Absolutely, protecting the American people from those who would do us harm is the federal government’s most basic duty. Everyone gets that. But when harm is done, as on 9-11, it is the nature of government to ask for more power and more authority in order to protect us. That’s how we get laws like the Patriot Act.”
In May of 2011, Obama signed into law a four-year extension of the Patriot Act.
“In fact, we now know that intelligence ‘failures’ of the sort that perhaps allowed 9-11 to happen were not due to a lack of authority, but were most likely the result of dysfunction,” Johnson said. “We can and should fix the dysfunction, but that can be done without granting the government broad new powers to dig in to American’s lives, demand financial records from banks and businesses, and monitor your cell phone because your kid goes to school with a kid whose father might be associated with what might be a terrorist-supporting organization.
“Thoughtful review and actual experience over the past ten years under the Patriot Act have given us the wisdom of hindsight. That hindsight leads me to the firm conclusion that it is a law that we do not need in order to protect ourselves, and that is itself a threat to the very constitutional guarantees of freedom it purports to preserve.”
Johnson, a long-time libertarian, had begun his 2012 presidential campaign as a Republican candidate. But after being barred from participating in GOP debates, he announced his intention to become the nominee of the Libertarian Party in late December.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/30/gary-johnson-calls-for-repeal-of-the-patriot-act/
"I don't care what Party he chooses to represent, I Totally Agree with this gentleman!!!!"By Eric W. Dolan
Monday, January 30, 2012 17:08 EST
Former New Mexico governor and... more
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Broadcast mega-personality Alex Jones has recently released dates for a new truth tour entitled ‘Blueprint to Defeat the New World Order.’
In addition to two announced shows, Jones will be visiting his affiliate radio stations to ‘present a series of detailed talks covering the history of the New World Order, its philosophy and mindset, what makes it tick and how we can decisively defeat the plan to establish a technocratic totalitarian world order and prison planet.’
Fellow truth personality David Icke has been touring the world with his brand of New World Order theory and theology for years, and the model seems to work quite well at awakening minds and helping people break free from the mental prisons programmed into our brains since birth.
Read more here: http://pacificprogress.us/2012/01/27/alex-jones-channels-david-icke-with-new-truth-tour/Broadcast mega-personality Alex Jones has recently released dates for a new truth tour... more
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After moving to Denver in the late ’80s, I sat in a hospital room with a gay friend (who was a terrific elementary teacher). He had been cornered by several young people who were trolling for a gay person to beat up. They beat him with a baseball bat and kicked him in the head until his eyes were so swollen he couldn’t see. For three days he was in a coma. I stayed with him until the swelling went down in his face and he wasn’t afraid someone would come back and kill him. He was a small man, and one of the kindest people I have ever known. His father was a Baptist preacher, and he was excommunicated from the family (with the exception of his sister). He thought moving to a bigger city would help.
The charge for nearly killing Mark was reduced to a misdemeanor. Those who beat him paid a $50 fine and were turned back out on the street to harm another day.After moving to Denver in the late ’80s, I sat in a hospital room with a gay... more
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In a questionable move and without offering a valid response to the Press TV CEO's letters, the British Office of Communications (Ofcom) has revoked Press TV's broadcasting license and finally removed the channel from the Sky platform. Press TV has interviewed Lizzie Phelan, freelance journalist, Damascus about Britain's hypocrisy in condemning other countries over freedoms of expression while abusing those freedoms at home and how actions by British state institution OFCOM reflects the demands of the one percent. What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview. --------------- Meanwhile in Syria ------------ About four days ago I visited Zabadani late at night after watching an Al-Arabiya report that stated thousands of so-called "Free Syrian Army" officers had taken the city. Later the channel showed footage of a convoy of approximately 10 cars filled with armed fighters apparently in the city. When I drove into the city, there was just one checkpoint on the way in. The legitimate Syrian Army soldiers there who were busy building a fire to keep warm in light snow waved us through. We drove for about ten minutes into the city and the streets were completely dead, nno gunshots no "Free Syrian Army" checkpoints, nothing. http://www.makeahistory.com/index.php/recent-news/43053-freelance-journalist-lizzie-phelan-talking-about-the-brits-crackdown-on-iranian-freedom-of-speechIn a questionable move and without offering a valid response to the Press TV... more
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Los Angeles Times...
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L.A. Zoo's only hippo euthanized after weeks-long illness
January 20, 2012 | 6:56 pm
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Jabba the L.A. Zoo's hippo had to be euthanized
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The sole hippopotamus at the Los Angeles Zoo was euthanized Friday after being ill with an unknown ailment for a month and not responding to treatment, zoo officials said.
Zookeepers noticed in December that the 28-year-old hippopotamus, Jabba, had a decreased appetite, abnormal bloating and was not responding to medication, zoo spokesman Jason Jacobs told City News Service. The hippo was under close veterinary care, but his condition rapidly worsened in the last few days.
The zoo's staff made the "difficult decision" to euthanize Jabba, according to a statement released by the zoo.
Jabba had been at the zoo since 2009. Before that, he lived at the San Diego Zoo for several years, where he sired several calves.
His body will be taken to the California Animal Health & Food Safety Laboratory System at UC Davis for a necropsy.
.Los Angeles Times...
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L.A. Zoo's only hippo euthanized after... more
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Twenty-eight years ago, in a highly disputed trial, an all-White jury convicted former Black Panther Assata Shakur of the murder of a New Jersey state trooper. In 1979, while serving a life sentence, she escaped from prison and eventually resurfaced in Cuba, where she was granted asylum and has lived ever since. But the U.S. government has continued to pursue Shakur, regularly increasing the bounty on her head and classifying her as a “domestic terrorist.” Last May the Justice Department issued an unprecedented $1,000,000 bounty for the return of Assata Shakur, 58, who continues to maintain her innocence. http://www.makeahistory.com/index.php/bizzareweird/43051-assata-shakur-former-black-panther-speaks-from-exile-in-cubaTwenty-eight years ago, in a highly disputed trial, an all-White jury convicted former... more
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worrg
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In yet another attempt to ‘ensure our liberties’, congress is currently debating Stop Online Piracy Act – aka SOPA. The very fact that their current laws are unenforceable due to a lack of personnel and funding, congress apparently feels that more laws are the answer…again. In their twisted heads, they seem to believe that by denying a dns (domain name service) entry onto the web via its ISP (Internet Service Provider), they can somehow save money. Just a few minor holes into this thing that I would like to shoot down right now.
1 – Smaller ISP’s are to be more impacted by this than the larger ones – small wonder as to why the big dogs in the major Companies support this nonsense (for a list of supporting companies, go t......
http://peacefreedomprosperity.com/6151/12-reasons-why-sopa-is-worse-than-you-think/In yet another attempt to ‘ensure our liberties’, congress is currently... more
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Immunity from judicial review
Like the Bush administration, the Obama administration has successfully pushed for immunity for companies that assist in warrantless surveillance of citizens, blocking the ability of citizens to challenge the violation of privacy. (Similarly, China has maintained sweeping immunity claims both inside and outside the country and routinely blocks lawsuits against private companies.)
Continual monitoring of citizens
The Obama administration has successfully defended its claim that it can use GPS devices to monitor every move of targeted citizens without securing any court order or review. (Saudi Arabia has installed massive public surveillance systems, while Cuba is notorious for active monitoring of selected citizens.)
Extraordinary renditions
The government now has the ability to transfer both citizens and noncitizens to another country under a system known as extraordinary rendition, which has been denounced as using other countries, such as Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan, to torture suspects. The Obama administration says it is not continuing the abuses of this practice under Bush, but it insists on the unfettered right to order such transfers — including the possible transfer of U.S. citizens.
These new laws have come with an infusion of money into an expanded security system on the state and federal levels, including more public surveillance cameras, tens of thousands of security personnel and a massive expansion of a terrorist-chasing bureaucracy.
Some politicians shrug and say these increased powers are merely a response to the times we live in. Thus, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) could declare in an interview last spring without objection that “free speech is a great idea, but we’re in a war.” Of course, terrorism will never “surrender” and end this particular “war.”
Other politicians rationalize that, while such powers may exist, it really comes down to how they are used. This is a common response by liberals who cannot bring themselves to denounce Obama as they did Bush. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), for instance, has insisted that Congress is not making any decision on indefinite detention: “That is a decision which we leave where it belongs — in the executive branch.”
And in a signing statement with the defense authorization bill, Obama said he does not intend to use the latest power to indefinitely imprison citizens. Yet, he still accepted the power as a sort of regretful autocrat.
An authoritarian nation is defined not just by the use of authoritarian powers, but by the ability to use them. If a president can take away your freedom or your life on his own authority, all rights become little more than a discretionary grant subject to executive will.
The framers lived under autocratic rule and understood this danger better than we do. James Madison famously warned that we needed a system that did not depend on the good intentions or motivations of our rulers: “If men were angels, no government would be necessary.”
Benjamin Franklin was more direct. In 1787, a Mrs. Powel confronted Franklin after the signing of the Constitution and asked, “Well, Doctor, what have we got — a republic or a monarchy?” His response was a bit chilling: “A republic, Madam, if you can keep it.”
Since 9/11, we have created the very government the framers feared: a government with sweeping and largely unchecked powers resting on the hope that they will be used wisely.
The indefinite-detention provision in the defense authorization bill seemed to many civil libertarians like a betrayal by Obama. While the president had promised to veto the law over that provision, Levin, a sponsor of the bill, disclosed on the Senate floor that it was in fact the White House that approved the removal of any exception for citizens from indefinite detention.
Dishonesty from politicians is nothing new for Americans. The real question is whether we are lying to ourselves when we call this country the land of the free.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/is-the-united-states-still-the-land-of-the-free/2012/01/04/gIQAvcD1wP_story_2.htmlImmunity from judicial review
Like the Bush administration, the Obama... more
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The widespread Internet blackout Wednesday, in which sites such as Wikipedia and Reddit went dark to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA), seems to have influenced members of the U.S. Congress.
PIPA co-sponsor Florida Sen. Marco Rubio pulled his name from the bill Wednesday and SOPA co-sponsor Arizona Rep. Ben Quayle pulled his name Tuesday.
Rubio communicated his withdrawal via a Facebook post, titled “A Better Way to Fight the Online Theft of American Ideas and Jobs,” in which he argues congress should avoid rushing to pass the bill that could have unintended consequences.
“As a senator from Florida, a state with a large presence of artists, creators and businesses connected to the creation of intellectual property, I have a strong interest in stopping online piracy that costs Florida jobs.
However, we must do this while simultaneously promoting an open, dynamic Internet environment that is ripe for innovation and promotes new technologies.”
The Florida Senator encouraged his co-sponsor Nevada Sen. Harry Reid to follow his lead and abandon the bill in order to “take more time to address the concerns raised by all sides, and come up with new legislation that addresses Internet piracy while protecting free and open access to the Internet.”
SEE ALSO: Why SOPA Is Dangerous
Following the PIPA co-sponsor’s withdrawal, Texas Sen. John Cornyn followed suit, posting a statement of abandonment on Facebook Wednesday morning. Similarly, a spokesperson for Nebraska Rep. Lee Terry said the Congressman is unable to support SOPA as it’s written and plans to withdraw his support as well, the Omaha World-Herald reports.
We will update this story throughout the day should more members of congress change their course.
Do you think the widespread website blackouts, such as Wikipedia’s, are to credit for the bills’ supporter drain?The widespread Internet blackout Wednesday, in which sites such as Wikipedia and... more
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Good video reviewing how SOPA/PIPA came to be and what the power of the peoples' voices can accomplish.
Time to stop lobbying for the 1% and start respecting the rights of all Americans.
STOP PIPA/KEEP SOPA DEAD.Good video reviewing how SOPA/PIPA came to be and what the power of the peoples'... more
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I stand with the participants of this video against SOPA/PIPA.
I AM FOR A FREE AND OPEN INTERNET.
DO you hear us, Congress?
Stand together today as a community and as a country and oppose PIPA and demand SOPA be left dead and not in a coma. Our freedom of expression, creativity and free speech are being threatened by those with the power and money to shut the Internet down to protect their own profits.
The Internet is the peoples' agora. KEEP IT FREE!
I will only be posting about PIPA today and voting all posts about it UP.
Please vote this up!I stand with the participants of this video against SOPA/PIPA.
I AM FOR A FREE AND... more
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Beginning earlier this morning at midnight, Wednesday, January 18, 2012 some major Internet companies did something historical - by going dark for 24 hours as part of an online protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA.Beginning earlier this morning at midnight, Wednesday, January 18, 2012 some major... more
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PROTECT-IP is a bill that has been introduced in the Senate and the House and is moving quickly through Congress. It gives the government and corporations the ability to censor the net, in the name of protecting “creativity”. The law would let the government or corporations censor entire sites; they just have to convince a judge that the site is “dedicated to copyright infringement.” The government has already wrongly shut down sites without any recourse to the site owner. Under this bill, sharing a video with anything copyrighted in it, or what sites like Youtube and Twitter do, would be considered illegal behavior according to this bill.
According to the Congressional Budget Office, this bill would cost us $47 million tax dollars a year. That’s for a fix that won’t work, disrupts the internet, stifles innovation, shuts out diverse voices, and censors the internet. This bill is bad for creativity and does not protect your rights.
This piece includes a video about SOPA.
http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/stop-sopa-protect-your-online-rights/PROTECT-IP is a bill that has been introduced in the Senate and the House and is... more
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By Eric W. Dolan
Monday, January 16, 2012
Less than a month after the National Defense Authorization Act was signed into law, President Barack Obama faces a lawsuit because of its highly controversial provisions regarding the detention of suspected terrorists.
Attorneys Carl J. Mayer and Bruce I. Afran filed a complaint against Obama and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta Friday in the Southern U.S. District Court in New York City on behalf of journalist Chris Hedges. The complaint states that the law violates the First and Fifth Amendments.
The $662 billion defense spending bill contained a controversial section that required terrorism suspects to be detained by the military without trial, regardless of where they were captured.
Despite language in the law that states it does not affect existing authorities relating to the detention of U.S. citizens or others captured within the U.S., Hedges claims that it still allows the government to detain Americans indefinitely without trial.
“I spent many years in countries where the military had the power to arrest and detain citizens without charge,” Hedges explained at TruthDig. “I have been in some of these jails. I have friends and colleagues who have ‘disappeared’ into military gulags. I know the consequences of granting sweeping and unrestricted policing power to the armed forces of any nation. And while my battle may be quixotic, it is one that has to be fought if we are to have any hope of pulling this country back from corporate fascism.”
While signing the bill, Obama issued a signing statement in which he pledged that the new laws would not violate Americans’ constitutional rights. But human rights advocates said that did not prevent future administrations from abusing the law.
The complaint alleges that Hedges could fall within the scope of the law. As part of his job as a journalist, he has direct communications with persons who are likely to be deemed engaged in hostilities with the United States. The detention provisions cover anyone who has “substantially supported” or “directly supported” “al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.”
Hedges said at TruthDig that the controversial bill passed “because the corporations, seeing the unrest in the streets, knowing that things are about to get much worse, worrying that the Occupy movement will expand, do not trust the police to protect them. They want to be able to call in the Army. And now they can.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/16/journalist-chris-hedges-sues-obama-over-national-defense-authorization-act/
"Take your Civil Liberties, at no Cost!!!"By Eric W. Dolan
Monday, January 16, 2012
Less than a month after the National... more
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Oli Garch says former Countrywide Financial CEO Angelo Mozilo is brilliant. At the height of the mortgage writing business Angelo Mozilo's Countrywide Financial Corp was originating 20% of all home loans in America...
On that chapter on genius businessmen in America—you completely overlooked Angelo Mozilo-- this guy has a genius for being always ahead of the curve .
At the height of the mortgage writing business his company, Countrywide , was originating 20% of all home loans in America. And by the time it had all blown up Angelo had already cashed out personally for $600 million dollars in salary and options.
He even sold Countrywide to Bank of America at the very moment the housing market collapsed. Now that is anticipation!
A couple of years later the SEC decides to try and flex their muscles and go after him for fraud. To go after a business man like him who simply trying to get people into homes and make a little money in doing it just seems wrong to me...
But Angelo settles in a civil suit and the fine is $22.5 million...now to really appreciate his true genius, when Angeleo sold to Bank of America, he put it in the contract that if any fraud charges cropped up the bank was on the hook for most of it. So Bank of America paid $20 million and Angelo only paid $2.5 million, with no criminal wrongdoing, and now he is sitting on an island enjoying his $600 million
Now that is a guy who's earned at least a chapter in my book.
http://www.thenakedemperor.com/oligarch/angelo-moziloOli Garch says former Countrywide Financial CEO Angelo Mozilo is brilliant. At the... more
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